At the end of the third, and probably final, X-Men movie The Last Stand Fox/Marvel took the dramatically shocking but financially prudent step of killing off two of the prime movers of the Marvel universe - portrayed, as they were, by the franchise's two most highly paid actors. Now they have announced that both characters will be returning in a prequel to the X-Men trilogy that sets out the origin of morally ambiguous metal-bending mastermind Magneto.

One of the distinguishing factors of the Marvel characters is that they exist in a stylised ‘real’ universe (for example Spider-Man swings through New York whereas DC heroes like Batman and Superman inhabit imaginary locales like Metropolis and Gotham City). However, the setting of the Magneto story (in the Auschwitz concentration camp and among Nazi-hunters in the aftermath of World War 2) will represent a delicate balancing act for the film’s director, David Goyer, if he is not to face accusations of insensitivity towards real victims of the Holocaust.

The film, to be released in summer 2009, was originally expected to feature a young actor selected for his resemblance to Sir Ian McKellen but recent reports suggest that advanced CGI techniques may be employed to ‘de-age’ the theatrical knight to enable him to reprise his role as the mutant antihero.

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